Does it Feel Hard to Trust Your Body?
In yesterday’s post, I talked about how I have heard a lot of pregnant people say, “I just want my baby here, so I know they are safe.”
While I hear this throughout people’s pregnancies, I tend to hear this mostly in the first trimester. It is during this trimester that:
Miscarriage is highest
One does not ‘look’ pregnant (more on this tomorrow!)
One cannot feel their baby moving in their body
Genetic testing is often completed
I, for sure, felt this way. With my first pregnancy, I took a pregnancy test, almost every single day, for WEEKS because I needed evidence that I was *still* pregnant.
Even though I was experiencing the typical pregnancy symptoms, I still could not trust my body was still pregnant.
Trusting one’s body can be very connected to our relationship with food. In my work in treating eating disorders, trusting one’s body - specifically the body’s ability to metabolize food and tell you when it's full - is one of the hardest parts of recovery.
Trusting one’s body is about letting go of control - not micromanaging the food you eat; how much you exercise each day; or the size of your body.
Trusting your body is about listening to what your body has to tell you, whether it is to rest or to notice important emotions.
We live in a society where being logical is praised over being emotional. Your family may have also minimized your emotions, leading you to further disconnect from your body and internal experience.
If you resonate with any of this, you are not alone. Please connect with a therapist (specifically one who specializes in perinatal mental health) to support you on this healing journey.
Gaining awareness of food and body judgments (and learning where they came from) is the first part of my course: Finding Peace With Food & Body (During Pregnancy, Postpartum, & Beyond).
If you are interested in learning more about my upcoming course - and how you can participate in my free beta program - click here!
